DRAFT Professional and Advanced Nursing Education Essentials Tool Kit

Competency-Based Education (CBE)

(updated March 21, 2021)

This section includes resources/references on CBE. For example,

• Definition of CBE: Competency-based education refers to a system of instruction,

assessment, feedback, self-reflection, and academic reporting that is based on students
demonstrating that they have learned the knowledge, attitudes, motivations, self-
perceptions, and skills expected of them as they progress through their education.

o Nurse educators have been pioneers in the use of behavioral

competencies/outcomes as a framework for curricular development, teaching, and
assessment in nursing education programs.
o Nursing literature has long addressed the need for defined competencies to
adequately assess nurse performance.
o Nursing and specialty accrediting bodies require the demonstration of measurable
outcomes indicating the effectiveness of educational programs/curricula and the
competence of graduates.

• What CBE is not

o A checklist of tasks
o A one and done experience or demonstration
o Isolated in one sphere of care or context
o Demonstrated solely on an objective test

• Basic principles of CBE

o A set of expectations which, when taken collectively, demonstrate what learners
can do with what they know.
o Demonstrated across all spheres of care and in multiple contexts.
o Clear expectations made explicit to learners, employers, and public.
o A result of determined (planned and repeated) practice.
o Visibly demonstrated and assessed over time.

• Learning experiences in CBE must be:

o Integrative and experiential
o Self-aware and reflective
o Active and interactive
o Developmental
o Transferable
 DRAFT Professional and Advanced Nursing Education Essentials Tool Kit

Competency-Based Assessment
This multidimensional process, integral to learning, that involves observation and judgment of
each student’s performance based on explicit criteria, with feedback to the student for improving
learning and to the faculty for improving teaching

• If learning is:
o Integrative and experiential—Assessments must be performance based.
o Self-aware and reflective—Assessments must include self-assessment and
public with expected outcomes and criteria for success.
o Active and interactive—Assessments must include feedback and external
perspectives.
o Developmental—Assessments must be cumulative and linked over time
o Transferable—Assessments must include multiple demonstrations and occur in
multiple contexts.

• Examples of an integrated assessment that crosses multiple domains:

o Provide advanced practice nursing care to one or more patients in the clinical
environment
o Articulate plans of care using theory and research to provide rationale for plan
o Dialogue with assessor to articulate knowledge base and rationale for actions
o Interact with client, client support system, and members of the health care team
o Self-assess performance against criteria for competency

• 2.1 Engage with the individual in establishing a caring relationship

• 2.2 Communicate effectively with individuals
• 2.3 Perform an assessment
• 2.4 Diagnose actual or potential health problems and needs.
• 2.5 Develop a plan of care
• 2.6 Demonstrate accountability for care delivery
• 2.7 Evaluate outcomes of care
• 2.8 Promote self-care management for individuals
• 2.9 Provide care coordination

• Additional Domains Assessed

o Domain 1: Knowledge for Nursing Practice
o Domain 4: Scholarship for the Nursing Discipline
o Domain 5: Quality and Safety
o Domain 6: Interprofessional Partnerships
o Domain 8: Informatics and Healthcare Technologies
o Domain 9: Professionalism

Videos on Competency-Based Education

• Dr. Jean Bartels’ Video on Competency-Based Education

December 2020 [Video Length - 63 minutes]

• Dr. Jean Bartels’ Video on Competency-Based Education

November 2019 [Video Length - 23 minutes]

• Summary of Dr. Bartels’ Presentation